Markeshia Ricks Photo
Evangeline Rivera could hear the sound of car horns blaring in the background as the woman, near tears, told her she was lost in Fair Haven and needed directions.
Rivera (pictured above at right), a dispatcher who has been with the city’s 911 center for only six months, directed the woman on the other end of the line turn by turn until she found her way.
“I told her to calm down, to relax,” Rivera said. “She was lost and nervous and about to break down. I told her just calm down, take it easy, tell me where you’re at. She told me where she was, and I took her from Point A to Point B.”
When asked what attracted her to a job that has a reputation as high stress she said, “I like helping other people.”
On Wednesday, Rivera was recognized not only for that act, but for all the work she’d done in her short time with the department. Her boss, 911 center Director Michael Briscoe, said she is one of the rising newcomers at the department, based on the fourth floor of police headquarters at 1 Union Ave.
“I have no doubt that she is going to succeed and receive all the training that we have ahead of us,” he said.
Rivera was one of 12 employees recognized for their work in the department, for their willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty to spearhead initiatives within the department.
Mayor Toni Harp said she wanted the dispatchers, who last month handled 13,394 calls, to know that though it might not be said often, the city appreciates the hard work they do every day.
“Most of you in this room are on the front lines of New Haven’s 911 system, and it’s a system that everyone in our town absolutely depends upon,” Harp said. “You are the first contact for people in crisis. You are the link to all that will restore balance in their lives. Your ability to provide a calm professional response to those on the other end of the line. It cannot be easy, and you are the unsung heroes of New Haven.”
911 Supervisor Nikki Britton was recognized for outstanding service.
“I know that we always hear when people are unhappy, and you never hear when people are happy,” she said. “But I want to say on behalf of the people of this city, that we are happy with the difficult job that you do.”
Briscoe (pictured with N’Koy Moore who was promoted from a dispatcher II to dispatch supervisor Wednesday), said that people like Rivera come into the public safety communications field do so out of a desire to help others.
“Everybody can’t be a police officer, a firefighter or EMT, and everyone cannot be a public safety telecommunicator,” he said. “I would challenge a lot of the EMT, firefighters and police officers to try to do what these call takers do, and a lot of them wouldn’t be able to make that call. So, for as tough as all of these jobs are, and the circumstances under which we protect the public, public safety telecommunications carries a high stress load. They handle every single call. My challenge is for people to really step back and see the nature of their work. It’s more than helping people. Sometimes they are EMTs over the phone.”
Beverly Hills/West Hills Alder Richard Furlow (at far left in picture) knows that work firsthand. He told dispatchers and call takers Wednesday that it was because of their work that he believes that his father is alive this year. This time last year, Furlow found his father unconscious on the floor. A 911 dispatcher talked him through the steps he needed to take to help.
“He would be dead right now if it was not for that dispatcher who calmly walked me through the steps that I followed,” he said. “I see what you do, and I am happy with the results.”
Other 911 employees recognized Wednesday were Guadalupe Donnelly, Stanley Kowalewski, Chris Helland, Maria Sterling, Paul Mullally, Debra Thornton, Zipporah Tompkins, Shirley Reyes-Carr, David Mancini, Santiago Sanchez, and Sherri Thompson.